The Department of French & Italian, the Department of Theatre & Drama and Horizons of Knowledge Lectures presents a
Commedia dell’Arte
A presentation by professional actor
Mace Perlman
Tuesday, March
4, 2008
6:00 pm
Grand Hall, Neal-Marshall
Black Culture Center
275 North Jordan Avenue
Mace Perlman, classically trained mime and actor, will bring to life the traditional mask-characters of the commedia dell'arte, using leather masks created in Vicenza, Italy, hailed by D.J.R. Bruckner in The New York Times as "splendid little works of art."
Many of us may never have heard of Pantalone, the original merchant of Venice, or of Arlecchino, his servant "just off the boat" from Bergamo, but are surprised to find that we recognize them nonetheless --- whether we first made their acquaintance through the Marx Brothers or through Laurel and Hardy, in the plays of Shakespeare or Molière, or in a classic episode of "Seinfeld."
As we get to know Brighella, Arlecchino's fellow zany from the hills of Bergamo, the Dottore from the famed University of Bologna, and various Captains from lands real and imaginary --- all through the interpretive art of Mr. Perlman --- we may unexpectedly find ourselves reminded of someone we once saw on the subway, know from our workplace, or even recognize as a member of our own family.
Historical insight and theatrical entertainment will go hand-in-hand as Mr. Perlman explores one of most influential cultural phenomena of modern Europe, whose archetypes are universal and whose myth and legacy are still with us today: the commedia dell'arte.
“The humor elicited
by his interpretations
was extraordinary: a laughter
both side-splitting and
humane.”
-- Robert Henke, Chair,
Performing Arts Department,
Washington University
Made possible through the support of the Olga Ragusa Fund for Modern Italian Literature and Culture, the Mary-Margaret Barr Koon Fund, the Department of Theatre and Drama, and the West European Studies Program.
